Ledger



UNITED .STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD L. IVILSON, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

LEDGER.

SPECIFICATION forming part' of Letters Patent No. 587,084, dated J' uly 27, 1897.

Application led October 10, 1894. Serial No. 525,523. (No model.)

T0 ooZZ whom t may concern:

of the ledger or record-book to avoid the use of an auxiliary index-book which is separate from such ledger or record-book, to provide means whereby the several accounts or records are indexed under the first, second, and

third letters of the names, the arrangement of such first, second, and third letters being such as to constitute primary, secondary, and tertiary indexes, which being used successively in the order named enable the operator to determine approximately the page upon which the desired account is entered, and, furthermore, to provide means for forming a local auxiliary index of the names in full to indicate the exact page containing the entry and the part of the page upon which it is entered. Y

Further objects and advantages of the invention will appear in thefollowing description, and the novel features thereof will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawing the figure represents a book provided with my improved form of index, the same opened to expose the letter H of the primary index and the letter a of the secondary and tertiary indices.

The margins'of the pages are cut or notched from a point near the center of their outer edges and downward from said point for thereception of the capital or large letters which comprise the primary index 1, the number of the letters of the secondary index 2, each let-` ter of said secondary index relating to a number. of pages adapted to contain names belonging under the initial letter of the primary index and having the second letter of the secondary index under which it is placed. Each letter of the primary index thus refers to a number of pages or groups of pages which are severally designated by the letters 'of the secondary series, a secondary index being used in connection with each letter of the primary index.

The groups of pages embraced between two successive letters of thesecondary index are again subdivided and their edges are cut or notched in the plane of the secondary-index notches for the reception of the tertiary-index letters 3, whereby a tertiary index is arranged for use in connection-With each secondary index. Thus the pages of the book are divided, primarily, into groups which are designated, respectively, by the letters of the primary index. The pagesor leaves in each group thus designated by the letters of the primary index are subdivided to form secondary groups, which are designated, respectively, bythe letters of the secondary index, and the pages or leaves of each group designated by a letter of the secondary index are again subdivided to form tertiary groups, which are designated, respectively, by the several letters of the tertiary index.

In addition to the above I employ an auxiliary name index, asshown at 4, consisting of a series of primary and secondary index letters belonging, respectively, to the primary and secondary groups in which the particular auxiliary index occurs. The use of the primary and secondary letters is a convenience to the bookkeeper, in that it is necessary only to append the 'remainder of a name to be indexed and the number of the column on the page in which the account is entered. (See the numerals designated b after the names Haab, Haas, Haddock, dac.) The letters of the tertiary index belonging to a given page are arranged at the top thereof, as clearly shown at7 in the drawing, the same consisting of the letters HAA- B-O-F.

The cuttings for the secondary and tertiary indices extend continuously along the edges of the leaves in the primary groups, or those leaves under each letter of the primary index, any cuttings which may be below theA ICO corresponding letter' of the primary group, as shown, being arranged inside of the line of the main or primary index. The cuttings for the primary index do not affect the portions of the pages above a given letter of the priinaryindex, and the portions of the pages below said given letter of the primary index are removed to expose the succeeding letters of the primary index. Referring to the drawing, the cuttings for the secondary index extend from a point near the top of the page to a point just above the letter II of the primary index, and below said letter of the primary index the cuttings for the secondary index are arranged to theleft or inside of the 'plane of the primaryindex.

For convenience in using the special indices I have combined the cuttings for the secondary and tertiary groups, the letters of each tertiary group being arranged contiguous to and below the several letters of the secondary index and the latter being spaced to provide suitable intervals, whereby the notches for the secondary and tertiary indices are arranged in a common plane. Inasmueh as letters of the secondary index occur at in; tervals between the letters of the tertiary index, it is necessary to distinguish the letters of one group from those of the other, and this may be done by size, color, or otherwise. In the drawing I have distinguished the letters of the secondary index from those of the tertiary index by making the formerlarger than the latter, but in practice I have found that it is desirable to distinguish said letters both by size and color. It will be seen that under the secondary letter A there are arranged nl, (g?? ((1,57 Ll-[1,77 (611,77 441 s, u, and y, forming the tertiary index under the secondary letter A. In the same way under the secondary letter I will be found the small letters l anc nu forming the tertiary group under said secondary letter.

The portion of the auxiliary index which is illustrated in the drawing is that occurring under the secondary-index letter A and the tertiary-index letter a, and therefore the auxiliar rindex column 4 contains a series of Hasj showing that all of the names to be placed in said column on that page will have those letters in the first and second places, and at the top of the column are arranged the small letters a, b, c, and f of the tertiary index. All names whose third letters are between a and g are indexed on pages under the tertiary-index letter a, the particular pages which must be sought for names having the diiferent lett-ers b, 0, (l, e, and f7 in the third or tertiary places being indicated by page-numbers following the names in the auxiliary index 4. It is unnecessary and inconvenient in a small ledger to include a tertiary index including all of the letters of the alphabet, in the lirst place, because of necessitating a great amount of cutting or notching, and, in the second place, because there Iare some letters which rarely occur in the third place in proper names. In other words, there would be few names in which such letters would be found in the third place in combination with the first and second letters of a given index. As the entries are made on the page to which the auxiliary index refers or the page on which it is placed the names are entered in the auxiliary column, the bookkeeper writing the remainder of the naine supplied by the first and second letters, which form a part of the index. At the head of the auxiliary-group column is arranged an indexing-table 5, giving in succession the letters of the secondary group, with the letter of the primary group in which said table occurs and the numbers of the several pages upon which the initial entry under each secondary letter is made. In addition to this the exposed portion of each page in the secondary and tertiary indices is provided with the number of that page, thus forming a main page-index c. I also employ an auxiliary page-index Gin connection with the tertiary index where a number of leaves are arranged under each character of the tertiary index, as with the tertiary letter a, to which is allotted all of the pages between 418 (exposed) and 425, next to the page ou which the next letter, g,7 of the tertiaryindex is placed to facilitate iinding a name after the proper group under the tertiary index has been discovered.

When under the above-described system of indexing a page or number of pages allotted to a given combination of index-characters becomes filled, it is necessary to transfer additional accounts to pages set aside or indicated by different index-characters, and the entry on the auxiliary or name index or column 4 is preferably made in red or other distinguishably-colored ink, with the number of the page to which the account has been transferred. An illustration of this will be found in the drawings,in which the account of Hafner d: Cothman has been transferred to page 53S, whereas the pages assigned to the letter II of the primaryindex extend only to 488 and the pages assigned to the IIas extend only to page 445,the IIes beginning on page 446. This entry indicates that as the pages set aside for the lla accounts have been filled the account mentioned has been transferred to an open page under a different ndex-letter. In the same way the account of I'Iaackett has been transferred to page 427 and may be found in the third column of said page.

rlhe advantage of cutting the edges of the leaves for the primary and other indices resides in the fact that all liability of the letters being drawn or twisted off is avoided, this objection being urged against those indices in which extension tabs or ears are e1nployed for the letters.

Having described my invention, what I claim is IOS IIO

tov

l. An indexed book having the margins of its leaves cut or notched to form primary groups indicated by characters forming a primary index, having the marginal edges of the leaves in each primary group cut or notched continuously in series from the first to the last leaf in said group, secondary-index characters arranged at intervals upon exposed portions of the leaves between contiguous primary-'index characters to subdivide each primary group of leaves into a plurality of secondary groups, the number of cuts or notchesy formed in the leaves in each primary group being greater than the number of characters in the secondary index, whereby a plurality of notches is' arranged between contiguous characters of the secondary index, and tertiary-index characters arranged between each two contiguous characters of the secondary index upon the exposed portions of the leaves in said additional notches between the characters ofthe secondary index, the series of notches in the portions of the leaves above the point of intersection thereof with the-cuttings or notches for the primary index being formed in the edges of the leaves in alinement with said cuttings or notches for the primary index, and the series of notches in the leaves below the point of intersection thereof with the series of cuttings or notches for the primary index being formed inside of, and parallel with, the series of cuttings or notches for the primary index, substantially as specified.

2. An indexed book having the margins of its leaves cut or notched to form primary groups indicated by characters forming a pribeing spaced to form an open series between,

the contiguous characters of which is arranged .a plurality of leaves subdivided by interposed cuts or notches to form tertiary groups, and the tertiary-index characters being arranged in groups between the characters of the secondary index and upon the portions of the leaves exposed by said interposed cuts or notches, an auxiliary or name index under each character of the tertiary index and arranged in a ruled column parallel lwith the outer edges of the leaves embraced under each character of said index, the auxiliary or name index being formed by a column of primar-y and secondary index characters arranged to form the first portions of the names ot' accounts entered on the pages, whereby the following portions of said names may be appended, and a pageindex having its characters arranged upon notched portions of the leaves included in each tertiary index, substantially as speciiied.v

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

EDWARD LA WILSON.

Witnesses:

E. HAND, GEO. GERLING. 

